The present disclosure relates generally to a building energy storage system configured to store and discharge energy resources (e.g., electricity, thermal energy, etc.) for use in serving building energy loads. The present disclosure relates more particularly to building energy storage system with a planning tool configured to optimize the cost of operating the building energy storage system.
An energy storage system can be used to store various types of energy resources in order to shift the demand for the energy resources in time. For example, an energy storage system can include thermal energy storage tanks configured to store cold or hot water, which can be used to offset the demand for cold or hot water of a campus or facility. Some energy storage systems include a battery asset configured to store electrical energy, which can be used to shift the demand for electricity. Energy storage systems find application also in peak load shaving or peak load shifting. The energy storage assets can be charged during the hours when utility rates are low and discharged during the hours when utility rates are high. The objective of these applications is to reduce the customers' utility cost.
Energy storage systems, particularly electrical energy storage systems, may be used to participate in Regional Transmission Organization (RTO) sponsored incentive-based demand response (IBDR) programs, where the customers can generate revenue in addition to minimizing their utility cost. Examples of IBDR programs include frequency regulation and economic load demand response. However, it can be difficult to efficiently control and allocate energy storage assets to optimize IBDR program participation. Additionally, a customer interested in investing in a battery system may wish to estimate the benefits (e.g., savings and revenue) a battery system will yield. It can be difficult to estimate the benefits of investing in a battery asset.